Peer Support Worker - Kings Lynn in Norwich

Kings Lynn and West Norfolk Community

£Basic Salary = £19,974.60 + £RRA 853.32 = £20,827.92

• 30 hours per week
• No personal care
• Permanent contract

Do you have lived experience of mental health challenges, recovery and using mental health services? Are you passionate about using your experience to inspire hope, empower others and demonstrate that recovery is possible? Do you believe in working alongside people as equals, recognising their strengths and supporting them to achieve the things that matter most to them? If so, we would love to hear from you.

Join Us as a Peer Support Worker within our West team! At NIHCSS, we believe that lived experience is a powerful asset. By bringing together professional expertise and personal experience, we place co-production, inclusion and human connection at the heart of everything we do. We are committed to creating services that are person centred, strengths based and focused on enabling people to live fulfilling lives within their communities.

We are currently looking for a Peer Support Worker to join our dedicated team supporting people across Kings Lynn and West Norfolk. In this role, you will use your own experiences of recovery to build trusting and authentic relationships with people accessing our services. Through empathy, active listening and shared understanding, you will support individuals to identify their strengths, build confidence, develop self-management skills and pursue their own personal recovery goals. You will work alongside a specialist multidisciplinary team, with guidance and support from our Peer Support Co-ordinator, delivering both one-to-one and group-based peer support. By sharing hope, fostering connection and promoting choice and independence, you will play a vital role in helping people shape their own recovery journey.

What You'll Bring

• Personal lived experience of mental health challenges, recovery and accessing support services.
• A belief in people's ability to recover, grow and live meaningful lives.
• Excellent listening and communication skills.
• The ability to use your lived experience safely and appropriately to support others.
• A commitment to equality, inclusion and reducing stigma and discrimination.
• A compassionate, collaborative and strengths-based approach.

Why Join NIHCSS?

Together for Mental Wellbeing and NIHCSS are committed to values that place people at the centre of everything we do. We believe in:

• Working together through collaboration, co-production and mutual respect.
• Promoting hope and opportunity by focusing on strengths, aspirations and recovery.
• Valuing diversity and inclusion, ensuring everyone feels heard, respected and able to be themselves.
• Making a positive difference in the lives of the people and communities we support.
• Being compassionate and person centred in all our interactions.

We are passionate about creating a workplace where people feel valued, included and able to thrive. We will support your ongoing learning and development, help you build new skills and provide opportunities to progress your career. We encourage innovation and welcome new ideas, ensuring every team member has a voice in shaping how we work and improve our services.

If you are ready to use your lived experience to inspire hope, champion recovery and make a meaningful difference in your community, we would love you to join us.

Key Responsibilities

• Deliver peer support that is grounded in Together’s peer support model and principles, working closely with the Peer Support Co-ordinator to support best practice.
• Promote the benefits of peer support across the service.
• Support individuals to work alongside the service, identify what they need, how they would like to progress supporting service users to exercise choice and control.
• Draw on your lived experience of mental distress to empower people to recognise their strengths and potential, whilst building hope and empowerment.
• Support individuals to increase their self-esteem, confidence and motivation through 1:1 and group peer support.
• Support people to develop coping and self-management techniques through 1:1 sessions and group based peer support, drawing on your own lived experience of mental distress.
• Access specialist advice, guidance and mentoring from the Service User Leadership Team to support best practice.
• Support service users accessing peer support to develop safety plans.
• Support people to connect with others, including within their communities, supporting the voice of lived experience to be amplified.
• Work closely with the Peer Support Co-ordinator, service users and the Service User Leadership Team to develop peer support within the service, including supporting the recording and monitoring of the impact of peer support.
• Access regular support and supervision to reflect on own mental wellbeing given the potential emotional demands of this role, whilst having a space to acknowledge the mutual benefits gained from the peer relationship.
• Attend mandatory peer support training and work collaboratively with the Service User Leadership Team as and when requested to support the development of Together’s peer support model and training.
• Keep up to date with Peer Support on Together’s intranet to ensure consistency in practice and use of resources.
• Promote Together’s unique approach to peer support at external events, as required.
• Develop links with local services and support people to access opportunities or support as required.
• Work with IT equipment and systems to ensure accurate and timely recording of service user data, accidents/incidents, as well as the use of shared electronic calendars and a lone worker safety system.
• Maintain and build upon good working knowledge of IT.
• Work within set targets and manage time effectively on own initiative and as part of a team.
• Work in a way that ensures the service is delivered in compliance with relevant legislation, the service values, policies and practices and contractual requirements.
• Carry out any other reasonable duties within the scope of the role as required.
• Commitment to working in accordance with Together’s Policies and Procedures, including Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Confidentiality and Safeguarding.

Skills, Knowledge & Expertise

Essential:

• Personal lived experience of mental health distress/using mental health services.
• An understanding of the difference between peer support and professional care in mental health.
• Understanding the importance of leadership of those accessing the service and the benefits of peer support.
• Knowledge and experience of supporting people individually or as part of groups to achieve goals relating to their mental and/or physical health.
• Ability to draw on your own experiences of mental distress in an appropriate way.
• Ability to establish and develop empathetic, service user led relationships based on mutual respect and trust.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to deal tactfully and sensitively with a range of people experiencing mental distress, including individuals who may be in crisis.
• Ability to respond to individuals’ needs promptly, in a flexible, consistent and appropriate way.
• Ability to develop, maintain and facilitate positive working relationships with individuals, staff, volunteers and health professionals.
• Excellent IT skills including use of Microsoft Office, shared calendars and the internet.
• Ability to manage a busy workload, work on own initiative, prioritise work, meet deadlines and make autonomous decisions where needed.
• Willing and able to engage with IT systems, including a client record management system, on a daily basis and accurately and efficiently maintain appropriate records.

Desirable:

• At least one year full-time equivalent experience of working in mental health, paid or unpaid.